THE WORDLS BEST TEST BOWLERS ARE GETTING OLDER IN COMPARISON TO THE WORLD’S BEST T20I BOWLERS WHO ARE GETTING YOUNGER
Investigating the ICC rankings for Test, ODI and T20i, it is seen that there are more young players (25 and under) that are performing in white ball formats.
Is Test cricket still appealing to young professional players? Has the game developed in ways where younger players are becoming more skilled at shorter formats of the game?
It was concluded in March 2019 by the MCC that out of 13,000 fans 86% voted Test cricket as their favourite format. Test cricket is still very much alive for the fans, so why are younger bowlers not playing and performing in the longer form of the game?
It could be argued Test match cricket is where the ‘best of the best’ of experienced players battle the hardest format of cricket over a long grinding 5 day game. This format of cricket is geared towards experience which is something the younger professional has not yet developed. Young professionals have developed bowling with many variations, Shane Warne was one of the first with his spin bowling. However, many younger bowlers for instance Shaheen Afridi are able to bowl seam and spin with varying speed, swing and seam position. This has become extremely effective in the shorter format with the quicker pace of white ball cricket, which can be seen in T20s’.
The question asks where are the young bowlers going to gain the experience and skills that are needed for Test match cricket or will the developing shorter form of the game displace the beloved format that is Test cricket?
Looking at the ICC Test bowling rankings a pattern is developing. There are more 25 and under aged bowlers in the top 30 of the ICC rankings - white ball cricket. It is noted on the 1st of April 2023 the top three ICC ranking bowlers for T20i were all 25 and under, whereas in the Test ICC rankings there was only one player that was 25 and under that was ranked in the top 10.
TEST
On April 1st, 1998 there were six young bowlers in the top 30: Shaun Pollock, Heath Streak, Chaminda Vaas, Saqlain Mushtaq, Jason Gillespie and Paul Adams. Pollock being the only player to make the top 10.
On April 1st, 2003 there were five young bowlers in the top 30: Harbhajan Singh, Makhaya Ntini, Zaheer Khan, Daryl Tuffey and Daniel Vettori. Two of these players were in the top 10: Singh at No.5 and Ntini at No.8.
On April 1st, 2008 there were eight young bowlers in the top 30: Dale Steyn, Mohammad Asif, Monty Panesar, Irfan Pathan, Umar Gul, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, Lasith Malinga and Jerome Taylor. Steyn being the only one out of the eight in the top 10 at No.2.
On April 1st, 2013 there were eight young bowlers in the top 30: Kemar Roach, Steven Finn, Nathan Lyon, James Pattinson, Tim Southee, Mohammad Amir, Ravindra Jadeja and Ishant Sharma. None of these players sat in the top 10, Roach sat at No.12.
On April 1st, 2018 there were only two young bowlers in the top 30: Kagiso Rabada and Pat Cummins. Rabada sat at No.1 top of the ICC Test bowling rankings.
On April 1st, 2023 there were still only two young bowlers in the top 30: Shaheen Afridi and Mehidy Miraz. With Afridi at No.5.
ODI
On April 1st, 1998 there were seven young bowlers in the top 30: Shaun Pollock, Saqlain Mushtaq, Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralitharan, Heath Streak and Aaqib Javed. Four of the seven were in the top 10. Pollock No.1, Mushtaq No.3, Vaas No.5 and Muralitharan No.9.
On April 1st, 2003 there were ten young bowlers in the top 30: Makhaya Ntini, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Daryl Tuffey, Shahid Afridi, Andrew Flintoff, Daniel Vettori, Jacob Oram and Ajit Agarkar. Two of these players were in the top 10: Ntini at No.4 and Khan at No.10.
On April 1st, 2008 there were eight young bowlers in the top 30: Farveez Maharoof, Lasith Malinga, James Anderson, Khan Abdur Razzak, Jerome Taylor, Prosper Utseya, Stuart Broad and Syed Rasel. Only one was in the top 10, Maharoof No.9.
On April 1st, 2013 there were six young bowlers in the top 30: Sunil Narine, Steven Finn, Ravindra Jadeja, Tim Southee, Kemar Roach and Angelo Mathews. Three were sat in the top 10, Sunil Narine No.2, Steven Finn No.3 and Ravindra Jadeja No.6.
On April 1st, 2018 there were nine young bowlers in the top 30: Jasprit Bumrah, Rashid Khan, Hasan Ali, Kagiso Rabada, Kuldeep Yadav, Pat Cummins, Mustafizur Rahman, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Hardik Pandya. Four of the nine were sat in the top 10, Jasprit Bumrah No.1, Rashid Khan No.2, Hasan Ali No.4 and Kagiso Rabada No.7.
On April 1st, 2023 there were five young bowlers in the top 30: Rashid Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mehidy Miraz and Sandeep Lamichhane. Three were sat in the top 10, Rashid Khan No.6, Shaheen Afridi No.8 and Mujeeb Ur Rahman No.9.
T20
On April 1st, 2008 there were thirteen young bowlers in the top 30: Umar Gul, Khan Abdur Razzak, RP Singh, Irfan Pathan, Morne Morkel, James Anderson, Mohammad Asif, Stuart Broad, Syed Rasel, Sohail Tanvir, Shakib Al Hasan, Lasith Malinga and Mashrafe Mortaza. Five of these were in the top 10. Umar Gul No.3, Khan Abdur Razzak No.5, RP Singh No.6, Irfan Pathan No.8 and Morne Morkel No.9.
On April 1st, 2013 there were five young bowlers in the top 30: Sunil Narine, Steven Finn, Angelo Mathews, George Dockrell and Tim Southee. Two of these players were in the top 10: Sunil Narine who sat at No.1 and Steven Finn who was at No.5.
On April 1st, 2018 there were six young bowlers in the top 30: Rashid Khan, Mustafizur Rahman, Shadab Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Amir and George Dockrell. Three of the six were in the top 10: Rashid Khan No.1, Mustafizur Rahman No.8 and Shadab Khan No.9.
On April 1st, 2023 there were nine young bowlers in the top 30: Rashid Khan, Wanindu Hasaranga, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Sam Curran, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Shadab Khan, Maheesh Theekshana, Arshdeep Singh and Shaheen Afridi. The top three on that list were under 25. Rashid Khan No.1, Wanindu Hasaranga No.2 and Fazalhaq Farooqi No.3.
It is clear a trend has started to emerge whereby younger bowlers are performing better in white ball cricket. The last ten years has seen a decrease in younger players performing in Test cricket with eight players 25 and under in the top 30 for 2008 and 2013, whereby in comparison there were two in 2018 and 2023. Comparing stats across all formats in 2018 and 2023, ODI there were nine and five young players respectfully in the top 30 and T20 six and nine.
Only more time will tell if young professionals have the endurance to become great Test match cricketers or if the development of white ball cricket will become fans and players favourite format.